Highly Suspect Reviews: Roman J. Israel, Esq

In this new film from the writer/director of Nightcrawler, Denzel Washington plays a lawyer. Not the slick and fancy, expensive suit kind. The kind that that other lawyer has working for him doing all the research work. The kind who hasn’t bought even a new suit in 30 years. The kind with heart, drive, and unshakable belief in doing what’s right. So, yeah, the kind that doesn’t really exist. He’s hidden away from the world until his partner unexpectedly ups and dies and he finds himself thrust into the real world, having his 60’s idealism met with a new generation that has learned not to share his viewpoint. Will he conform, or will he wither away? Chris and Elliot (our resident lawyer) discuss this film at length and I think our verdict will surprise you.

Born in the wilds of northern Virginia, in 1992 Chris managed to put all of his survival skills to use and barely escaped with his life to Austin Texas, where ever since he’s dabbled in everything from plumber’s assistant to sandwich maker, from band to bar management. An opportunity to see theatrical release films for free, by becoming a critic on a local public access show called “The Reel Deal”, turned into a full time job when Chris and his friends decided to take it to the internet. They built the site Spill.com, adding multiple podcasts and animated features, to no small amount of success. During this time, a fortuitous friendship sprung up between Chris and young Brian Salisbury, who was also a local film critic, and they merged their forces of will, and their laundry list of ideas for shows, to eventually build this paradise you see before you.